Greek Lamb Loaf
Old Dog, New Trick
A couple of years ago I had dinner with a friend, Susanne, and she invited her sister, Maggie, along. Maggie turned out to be as serious a foodie as Susanne and I are and the three of us enjoyed an excellent meal at Tierra in Atlanta. As foodies are wont to do, we spent a good part of the meal talking about food and cooking.
We got to talking about Greek food and subsequently Maggie sent me a recipe — well, a list of ingredients, anyway — for lamb burgers with a decided Greek accent. I had a chunk of raw lamb in the freezer left over from a leg roast I'd butterflied a few weeks back, so I gave it a try. But rather than do burgers, I made a loaf figuring it would last better as leftovers than burgers would.
BTW, I bought the grinder attachment for my Kitchen Aid a few years back with the intent of getting into sausage making. But I found I also love the control over the final product that grinding my own meat gives me. And it's handy to have when you need to convert a slab of lamb leg into ground lamb.
A couple of years ago I had dinner with a friend, Susanne, and she invited her sister, Maggie, along. Maggie turned out to be as serious a foodie as Susanne and I are and the three of us enjoyed an excellent meal at Tierra in Atlanta. As foodies are wont to do, we spent a good part of the meal talking about food and cooking.
We got to talking about Greek food and subsequently Maggie sent me a recipe — well, a list of ingredients, anyway — for lamb burgers with a decided Greek accent. I had a chunk of raw lamb in the freezer left over from a leg roast I'd butterflied a few weeks back, so I gave it a try. But rather than do burgers, I made a loaf figuring it would last better as leftovers than burgers would.
BTW, I bought the grinder attachment for my Kitchen Aid a few years back with the intent of getting into sausage making. But I found I also love the control over the final product that grinding my own meat gives me. And it's handy to have when you need to convert a slab of lamb leg into ground lamb.
Greek Lamb Loaf
Serves 4.
1 lb ground lamb — trimmed of most fat
1 lg slice white bread — crusts trimmed
3 tbsp milk
1 tbsp olive oil
3 oz feta, crumbled
1 sm onion, diced
2 garlic cloves — minced
1/4 c pignoli — toasted
1/4 c bread crumbs
1/4 c chopped fresh mint
1/4 c chopped fresh parsley
pepper to taste (the feta provides salt)
Soak bread in milk, then tear into tiny pieces (this is called a panade and adds moisture).
Sautee onion and garlic in olive oil until fragrant and translucent.
Combine all ingredients, shape into a loaf, and bake at 350F until internal temperature is 155F. Allow to rest for 15 minutes before slicing.
I topped it with tzatziki sauce.
7 Comments:
I haven't made meatloaf yet this winter so this looks like my Saturday dinner. Do you like your KA grinder attachment? I have a manual grinder that works fine, but stuffing the casings requires three hands so I only make sausage when I have a helper.
Greek meatloaf! What a great twist on the same old-same old meatloaf. Definitely bookmarking this one.
RideandCook,
I really like my grinding attachment, I can imagine making sausage alone, but only because I've made pasta alone using a hand-cranked machine.
Lydia,
This is a favorite of mine, and the feta is what really makes it fun.
I've been considering a grinder attachment, and this post is a huge check mark in the "Oh, spoil yourself & buy it" column.
You know I'm always up for new lamb recipes - and this one looks wonderful. We love our KA grinder attachment. When we have lambs butchered, we always get a few packages of 'stew meat' which we often grind up. And a freshly ground beef chuck steak (you get a whole bunch of these from one steer) makes the best burgers ever.
Susan,
This is really good - a great combination of flavors and textures.
Hi Kevin, just wanted to thank you for the outstanding Greek lamb loaf recipe. I work as a cook at L'Attitudes Cafe and Bistro in Marquette, MI. and , seems like I am frequently in the quandry of what to do with the few lbs of ground lamb usually left over from the Pastitsio. The burgers are always a popular option, but I LOOOOVE the concept of the versitlity of the loaf. We would best be described as " Euro-Aisian-American" kicked up/high end comfort food (could our description be any longer!!??)...and to finish with the Tzatziki sauce? Perfection! I am smelling the "sandwich of the day" on a nice warm flat bread....maybe serve with a small side of veggies and hummus?
Peace and blessings, Paula
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